ABBOT JANJIC ON SECURITY OF SERB SANCTITIES IN KOSMET

18/1/2011

Most important historical and spiritual Serb sanctities in Kosmet are still under the protection of the international forces, although it had been announced they would be turned over to the Kosmet police. The Serbian Orthodox Church is against such decision of KFOR, since it does not trust the Kosmet police, abbot Sava Janjic of the Visoki Decani monastery told our radio. However, he expects that this complex issue will be among the topics of Belgrade-Pristina dialog. The feature by Vukomir Petric.

Abbot of the Visoki Decani monastery, which is one of the most beautiful and valuabel Serb sancitties in the Province, Sava Janjic says that the security vacuum created by the turnover of Serb churches and monasteries to the Kosmet police is unacceptable. According to him, there are several reasons for the lack of trust to the Kosmet police. “The provincial police work in a specific political context that has not been accepted by the UN, but instead they are related to the unilaterally proclaimed independence of Kosmet. Therefore, the scope of the Kosmet police is politically rather limited. On the other side, in the professional their forces are not sufficiently trained to be able and take over the responsibility for the security of Serb communities south of the Ibar River”, believes archpriest Janjic.

In that regard, he continues, if the decision of KFOR cannot be changed, we should at least strive to keep the sanctities under the international jurisdiction for as long as possible. Janjic has expressed hope that this issue could be on the agenda of the forthcoming talks between Belgrade and Pristina. “With the possible commencement of the Belgrade-Pristina dialog, we expect this topic to be touched upon, in order to find an acceptable solution for the security of most significant Serb sanctities. The events from the not so distant past show that Serb churches and monasteries are very much threatened, and there is also danger that they could be attacked again. The preservation of the Serb cultural identity is very important as the key for the survival of the Serb community in Kosmet, especially for the Serbs who live in the enclaves in central parts of the Province”, emphasized abbot Sava.

Let us remind, last autumn KFOR turned over the care of several Serb monasteries to the Kosmet police, but most important ones are still under the international protection.

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